St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1887-08-27
THE FACTS PROVED.
HOW RELIGION HAS PUT SCIENCE
TO SHAME.

Rev. T. De Witt Talmage's Sermon on
skepticism-Learned Men Have Laughed
at All the Improvements of the World
Faith the Weapon of the Christian.
THE HAMPToNs, August 21.-"The
Facts Proved" is the subject of discourse
by the Rev. T. De Witt Talmage, D. D.,
to-day. His text is from the 18th verse
of Acts iii: 1--WE are witnesses" Fol-
lowing is his sermon in full:
In the days of George Stephenson, the
perfector of the locomotive engine, the
scientists proved conclusively that rail-
way train could never be driven by steam
power successfully and without peril;
but the rushing express trains from Liv-
erpool 10 Edinburgh, and from Edin-
burgh to London, have made all the ma
ton witnesses of the splendid achieve
mcnt. Machinists and navigators proved
conclusively that steamer could never
cross the Atlantic ocean; but no sooner
had they successfully proved the impossi-
bility of such an undertaking than the
work was done, and the passengers on the
Cunard, and the Inman, and the National
and the White Star lines are witnesses.
There went up guffaw of wise laughter
at Professor Morses proposition 10 make
the lightning of Heaven his errand boy,
and it was proved conclusively that the
thing could never be done; but now all
the news of the wide world, by Asso-
ciated Press, put in your hands every
morning and night, has made all ma
lions witnesses.
So in the time of Christ it was proved
conclusively that it was impossible for
Him to rise from the dead. 1t was shown
logically that when man was dead, he was
dead, and the heart and the liver and the
lungs having ceased to perform their
offices, the limbs would be rigid beyond
all power of friction or arousal. They
showed it to be an absolute absurdity
that the dead Christ should ever get up
alive; but no sooner had they proved
this than the dead Christ arose, and the
disciples beheld Him, heard His voice,
and talked with Him, and they took the
witness stand to prove that to be true
which the wiseacres of the day had
proved to be impossible; the record of
the experiment and of the testimony is
in the text: Him hath God raised from
the dead, whereof we are witnesses"
Now, let me play the skeptic for mo-
ment. There is no Cod" says the
skeptic, "for l have never seen Him with
my physical eyesight. $pur Bible is
pack of contradictions There never
was a miracle Lazarus was not raised
from the dead, and the water was never
turned into wine. Your religion is an
imposition on the credulity of the ages"
There is an aged man moving in that
pew as though he would like to respond.
Here are hundreds of people with faces
little flushed at these announcements,
and all through this house there is
suppressed feeling which would like to
speak out in. behalf of the truth of our
glorious Christianity, as in the days OF
the text, crying out, eve are witnesses y
The fact is, that if this world is ever
brought to God, it will not be through
argument, but through testimony. You
might cover the whole earth with apollo
gies for Christianity and learned treatises
in defense of religion-you would not
convert a soul. Lectures on the harmony
between science and religion are beauti'
full mental discipline, but have never
saved a soul, and never will save a soul
Put man of the world and man Of the
church against each other, and the man
of the world will in all probability get
the triumph. There are thousand
things in our religion that seem illogical
to the world, and always will seem illogl'
cal.
Our weapon in this conflict is faith
not logic; faith, not metaphysics; faith
not profundity; faith, not scholastic ex-
ploration But then, in order to have
faith, we must have testimony, and II
five hundred men, or one thousand men
or five hundred thousand men, or five
million men get up and tell me that they
have felt the religion of Jesus Christ
joy, comfort, help, an inspiration,
am bound as fair minded man to &C.
cept their testimony. want just now
TO put before you three propositions, the
truth of which think this audience will
attest with overwhelming unanimity
The first proposition is We are wit
nesses that the religion of Christ is able
to convert soul.
The Gospel may have a hard time to
conquer US, we may have fought it back,
but we were vanquished. You, say con-
version is only an imaginary thing. We
know better. ave are witnesses" There
never was so great change in our heart
and life on any other subject as on this.
People laughed at the missionaries in
Madagascar because they preached ten
years without one convert; but there are
thirty three thousand converts in Mada-
gascar to day People laughed at DR..
Judson, the Baptist missionary, because
he kept on preaching in Burmah five
years without a single convert; but there
are twenty thousand Baptists in Burmah
to-day People laughed at Doctor Nor.
rison, in China, for preaching there
seven years without single conversion
but there are fifteen thousand Christians
in China today. People laughed at the
missionaries for preaching at Tahiti fol
fifteen years without single conversion
and at the missionaries for preaching in
Bengal seventeen years without single
conversion; yet in all those lands there
are multitudes Of Christians to- day.
But why go so far to find evidence Of
the Gospels power 10 save soul? 1--WE
are witnesses" We were SO proud tina
no man could have humbled US; W.
,.roro 81 ha ri that no earthly DOWeI